SAN DIEGO – After pulling a fastball inside to Ramón Laureano in the first inning on Monday night, Cubs lefty Matthew Boyd walked off the mound and tapped the top of his head. The veteran pitcher immediately knew it was a mistake.
Boyd mouthed, “My bad,” and patted his chest as an apology to catcher Moisés Ballesteros as the pitch was confirmed as a ball. It was a small moment that could have been insignificant, but it wound up playing a role in the Cubs’ 9-7 loss to the Padres in the opener of a three-game set at Petco Park.
The majestic grand slam that Ballesteros launched off Randy Vásquez in the third inning – one complete with an emphatic bat flip – could have been the story. It was the rookie’s first career slam, continuing his torrid start to this season and giving the North Siders a 5-3 lead. But a series of missteps overshadowed his milestone moment.
The Cubs rallied for a pair of runs in the ninth – ending Mason Miller’s club-record scoreless streak at 34 2/3 innings – but the comeback went no further.
That errant first-inning challenge by Boyd came within a leadoff walk to Laureano, as part of a three-run outburst by the Padres in the opening frame. In it, Boyd surrendered an RBI single to Jackson Merrill and a two-run automatic double to left off the bat of San Diego’s Ty France.
Boyd’s mistake factored into things, because Ballesteros also later missed on a challenge (an 0-1 ball ruling against Miguel Andujar in the third), which left the Cubs with zero remaining. That impacted Cubs righty Ben Brown, who fired a 2-2 sinker to France in the fifth that had the makings of an inning-ending strikeout. It was ruled a ball, running the count full.
Brown went on to walk France, putting two runners aboard for Nick Castellanos. France then stole second base and Castellanos brought in two runs with a single up the middle, putting Chicago in a 6-5 hole. The Padres added two more runs via a France triple in the seventh inning, then Gavin Sheets homered in the eighth en route to handing the Cubs their third consecutive loss.